the dog who ruined christmas.

so i have five dogs.  i'm one of "those" people who buys christmas presents for their dogs.  and i wrap them.  and i put them under the tree.  my dogs have never bothered them until:

christmas caper 2009: the dog(s) who ruined christmas!

all was quiet in the house.  mardi and maddy were in my room with sugarplum fairies dancing in their heads.  shelby was sleeping peacefully with my dad, all snuggled up in the electric blanket.  that left two.  the less-than-dynamic duo.  abbie and sophie:

i was awakened by crunching.  lots of crunching.  i assumed that sophie was eating breakfast--she's a loud cruncher.

i was correct.  if you call breakfast one of their christmas presents.  i give you exhibit a: sophie, in the middle of the damage. (it's dark and hard to see because i had to take pics with my phone and forgot to turn the light on--sorry!)

exhibit b: 

note: the dog in the foreground has been found innocent of all charges.

i will give them this, they opened and ate their own present and left everyone else's (including the other dogs) alone.  though, they were interupted in the middle of their scheme.  exhibit c:

i watch sophie go up to the bag, take a treat out of it, then run waddle around the corner to eat it.  i grab the bag of treats.

exhibits d and e:

 i called my mom (who couldn't talk for laughing) and she confirmed that there are usually 9-10 treats per bag.  we had three left.

so on top of ruining their christmas, they will later have bellyaches that we will have to deal with. merry christmas to us.

sick and tired of being sick and tired.

this is my vacation.  

i am sick--sick enough to do nothing but lie in bed all day sleeping (so not me).

what's the moral of this story, you may ask.  it's this:  this freaking sucks!  i can't bake the hundreds of "to be baked" recipes i have marked; i can't finish the christmas shopping that needs to be finished; i can't talk to my best friend cause my voice is practically non existent; i can't enjoy my precious time off!

it's been a long, hard, very, very busy semester and i need a break that doesn't involve sore throats, endlessly stuffy then runny noses, and fever.  seriously vacation gods, what gives?!

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in other news, what's with the lack of apostrophes i've noticed these days?  seriously, the apostrophe means something.  bloggers and news outlets should really use them.  just sayin'.

brandipalooza 2009.

it began friday. my family couldn't be together until friday, so we waited to have thanksgiving until that day. after stuffing ourselves with turkey, dressing, and all the appropriate fixings, my sister, bestie, and i headed for my fave band's concert. the opening act went on an hour and a half late and then stunk up the place. he did a set of eight songs. six of those were covers. the covers were not....good. we killed time by taking pics, drinking, and playing with my sister's iphone (which she needs to have surgically attached to her hand): my fave new drink, the ricky ricardo: finally eyb took the stage. they were awesome (as usual).

saturday was spent with my family, celebrating both my grandmother's birthday and my own. it culminated in a delicious dinner and a rousing game of partini. my sister and i won. twice. take that aunt betty. sunday was my actual birthday, and my bestie made it quite a fun and special day. it began with a trip to the christmas tree farm: the road trip was followed by a hay ride, after which nick was handed a saw: and we set off on the quest for the perfect christmas tree: finally, we found it, and nick, feeling a little guilty, proceeded to chop it down. he neglected to yell timber as it fell. the stump. don't worry little stump, you have fulfilled your destiny and will be replanted next year: nick then had to drag his tree to the road so we could be picked up: this made him feel very manly. like a lumberjack, really: and, finally, proof that i was indeed there: we then went to his house, decorated the tree, drank hot cocoa, and reveled in the cozy comfort of a warm house, great movie, good friends, and chocolate covered pretzels. it was a good birthday. probably the best so far.

gobble...gobble...gobble...

happy thanksgiving, all!

the week of duessa

in order to (hopefully) break free of a string of sucky birthdays, i am mixing things up this year.

in homage to an old coworker of mine, i am titling this week "the week of duessa" and documenting the whole thing:

Day One: it all started. my classes went well. i got to lecture on fairy tales (which excites me more than it probably should), and my students seemed into it. i love ending the semester on a good note, and this project seems to do just that.

we have three weeks until school is out. THANK YOU BABY JESUS!

i discovered tons of new and great music that i have been rocking out to all day. it's awesome. really.

i love itunes. genius rocks!

until tomorrow~duessa, out.

life adventures

things i hate:

1) evil scantron machines.
mr. scantron,
i don't use you very often. when i do, i would love it if you could work. the first time. not the twelfth. you don't get to pick and choose which of my students' exams you would like to grade. you have to grade them all. this is your job. your purpose. your destiny. buck up!

2) high school english teachers who can't communicate intelligently through e-mail.
ms. know-it-all-who-actually-knows-nothing,
you suck at typing and spelling. no wonder my students come into class unable to write complete, effective sentences.

3) music research papers.
essays,
i loathe you. you destroy my mood and make me want to drink. a lot. please show signs of improvement.

4) my bestie having to work all the time.
best friends job,
hire some freaking people already so i have my best bud/hang out partner back!

things i love:

1) the new train album.
train,
you rock. keep on rocking. never change! xoxo

2) apple danishes.
danish,
you are delicious and cinnamony and oh so good on a crisp fall morning.

3) Jon Ronson.
mr. ronson,
you are a hi-larious writer, and i very much enjoy your books. please write something new soon.

3) anticipation of upcoming events
concerts/plays i will be attending soon,
i'm really looking forward to you. please be great!

halloween and spooky things...

it all started at 8. an assortment of characters showed up: kittens, rednecks, midgets with attitude, ewoks, and more.

it was, simply put, a hot mess.

we managed a few group pics.
the kitten.
the redneck. check out that mullet.

the goth fairy.
the american loathing, wine guzzling, chain-smoking frenchie.

the mad scientist who's trying not to laugh.
the midget with 'tude.
the midget giving the fairy a little thrill.

the ewok.

my creation. six legs. oh, yes. six legs.

happy halloween, all!